This is where I share my passion for music and support the bands I like ...expect intense, passionate, and radical stuff from this blog.

mardi 29 mai 2012

Amnis nihili-Christological escalation EP

Amnis nihili from Greece offered us with their first (!) record, the EP Christological escalation, one of the best black metal records for 2011.

In their own word they play "harsh and mesmerizing
metal.Their
sonic inspiration originates primarily from the french and norwegian
masters, as well as from select industrial & ambient acts.".

That gives indeed a good idea of how sound their music. Must be added that the EP shows a band not only with great musicianship and songwriting qualities but also really mastering its music and following its own path.

It contains four tracks, three songs are intense and complex black metal with a great atmosphere (with the help of strong and menacing melodies and noise in the background) and even the noisy instrumental is not a filler.

But their music speaks by itself and is their best advocate, so check it for ex on their BC page. You can also read their blog amnisnihili.com.

And your lucky because thanks to the guys in Amnis nihili that agreed to answer to my questions you can read it below :

-can
you present the band, it’s history and it’s music?

A+D : Amnis
Nihili has spawn from the ashes of a grindcore act that brought us
two together back in 2006, and it has its beginnings in early 2008.
Right now the band consists of D who handles guitars, ambience,
programming, and of course being the creator, and A who handles
guitars (from now), programming and ambience. Harsh and mesmerizing
metal is the perfect description for the music that we perform. We
strive to avoid boundaries and not to limit ourselves when we are in
the mood of creation.

-do
you play live? If so, do you usually share the scene with other black
metal bands or with any kind of metal/hardcore bands?

A: We have yet
to perform live mainly because the material is very challenging and
besides me and D there are at the moment few persons that are able to
transform the work into practical playing. But it will happen. The
second part of your question is also not yet realised.

-I
know that your singer P left the band recently. Do you already know
who will handle vocals duty in the future? Will the band change a bit
its musical orientation?

A:
We have some possible candidates in mind, but there is no rush at the
moment. And as for any change in musical direction, I wouldn't know
since this is not how we do things in the Amnis camp. We simply do or
do not. There are no fixed plans and no set scenarios.

-what
is black metal in your opinion? What does it mean to you?

A: Black metal
is a subgenre of metal music, an extreme form of art and expression,
following some guidelines, some aesthetics and some concepts. To me
personally it means a lot since I for the most part of the past 20
years have been dealing with it as a listener and as an artist. But
it does not have any greater meaning than other genres of music,
since again I have been studying music for the last 25 years. It
simply speaks louder in my soul and touches some parts of my
aesthetics harder than the rest.

D : In my
opinion and as far as I am concerned, Black Metal, besides giving me
aural satisfaction, is a genre that allows for more wide
experimentations within its also wide spectrum. Although many think
that Black Metal lies within a narrow band, it actually leaves a lot
of space for Innovation.

-what
I like in your EP is that you kept what’s the best in black metal,
the atmosphere and dark intensity, but without being trapped in it’s
formal limits, managing to add new elements in a way that keep the
black metal sound and bring at the same time “new life” into it
in a way. Is it intentional?

A:
But of course it is! Everything is as it should be, and all is as it
is for a reason. Nothing is left purely in luck. And thank you very
much for taking such notice.

D : It is just
how music emanates from within!

-I
know you like the French BM scene, do you think you share with the
best French bands this will to renew black metal to keep it at a high
or higher level of “intense darkness with a sense of danger and
impredictability” (one way to describe it maybe?).

D : What is
important to us is to create music that sounds good and feels right.
All else is irrelevant.

-in
your opinion which are the elements in the music of Amnis Nihili that
bring something new to the BM game?

A: I could not
tell. This is not included in my concerns. Maybe D has more to say on
the matter.

D : Something
“new” is a big word to speak. Time will tell if Amnis Nihili has
presented something new.

-which
instrument is it in the middle of Infamous judeochristian seed? An
accordion? The result is great anyway!

D : It is an
ebow used on my guitar, with some clever use of delay and reverb.

-how
do you add ambient/noise elements to your music, how do you see it?
Tell us more also about your interest in noise and soundscapes.

A: Ambience
and sounds are added when and where they are needed and when they
have some meaning. Sometimes it is technical sometimes it is
emotional. My interest is not so intence as that of D and P. They
possess a fascination with soundscapes and atmospheres deeper than
the depths of the ocean.

D: Because I
am very into sound synthesis, I tend to make my own sounds when I
need them, and not only then. Analog and digital processors help to
form basic sound waves into complex atmospheres. Thus interesting
elements come into being and of course into Amnis Nihili's music.
Personally I am deeply involved with ambient/industrial/noise and
experimental music in general, so it is a vital and natural part of
Amnis Nihili.

-religion
(especially Christian) is the main target in Christological
escalation, I agree it deserves to be attacked, but isn’t money the
god number one in today’s society? As a greek band I think you can
easily relate to that, what do you think about it?

A: The lyrical
concept of Christological Escalation was done entirelly by P. At the
time we felt ok with it but since then a lot has changed, we have
progressed and formed opinions different from those of the mainstream
or even underground “true” or whatever black metal We do not
endorse any attacks on any religion. We even went one step further
and distanced ourselves from the anti- everything point of view of
black metal. We do not believe this brings humanity a step closer to
its inner humble beginnings nor does it help people experience life
with a positive perspective. Money, and material goods have been the
driving force for over 2 millenias and sadly this is not going to
change any time soon. The problem is again people and how they have
lost contact with their values, actually never having been taught
any. Why should we as a greek band relate more to such a global
phenomenon, than yourself? I do not understand this.

D : Epxect
different concepts from us in the future, in terms of lyrics,
meanings, messages!

-what
can you say about the next record? Are the songs already written?

A: The only
thing I can surely say is that it will be a work with depth and
essence which Christological Escalation only hinted at.

D : We are in
the process of writing new material, but it is safe to assume that it
is a lot more challenging than Christological Escalation was.

-what
is planned for Amnis Nihili in 2012?

A : We like to
do things slowly and let them mature inside before they are worked
and shaped into form. We will have to see what's in store for
everyone in personal and professional level this year. No news is
good news.

D : We will
intensify the writing of new music and the finding of suitable
personas to make Amnis Nihili a functional band.

-want
to add something?

D
+ A: Thank You very much for taking the time to devour our work and
this interview. We do wish that something good and positive will come
out. Take care!

lundi 28 mai 2012

Morbus chron-Sleepers in the rift

Seeen this insanely cool cover art on the left? Morbus chron from Sweden sounds like that. Demented old school death metal at its best (somewhere between early Morbid angel and swedish death metal, and maybe a bit of Obituary for the cool vocals). They released in 2011 their first full lenght, a record called Sleepers in the rift (produced by Nicke Andersson) which is among the best death metal records for 2011. Its filled with viciously cool riffs and solos, and catchy as fuck songs with a weird atmosphere.

dimanche 27 mai 2012

Six Brew Bantha

Six Brew Bantha is a canadian trio playing a typical but really well crafted and enjoyable grindcore / powerviolence. They released a self titled LP last month and if you're into this kind of music I recommend you try it. Everything that is cool in grind/PV is there, ridiculous speed and intensity, many rythm changes, frenetic blastbeats, some d-beat here and there, a few slower parts for the groove, chainsaw guitars, screams, the classical grind snare drum sound, shorter than one minute songs, etc... the real grind deal!

samedi 26 mai 2012

Domo

Domo plays a really psychedelic and spacey kind of rock with touches of rocking heavy blues and prog rock (the cover art is not cheating you, it really is spacey!). Their self titled record released in january 2011 is really a masterpiece and I cant' stress enough how good is it. Really one of the best discoveries for the year in psychedelic rock (with Pyramidal and Hollow mirrors. by the way Oscar Soler guitarist in Pyramidal plays the bass in Domo. You can read the review of the Pyramidal record with an interview that I did here). Great musicianship, great songwriting, great smoking riffs, good soli, trippy parts, rocking parts, a really cool listening experience. I could enter in long descriptions of the songs, but I prefer letting the music do the talking...

If you're into psychedelic rock you'll love Domo. If you're not, well, then chances are you'll get into it after listening to them (you've been warned)!

and read this interview (tanks to them for agreeing to answer to my questions) :

- To start with can you present the band?

The band was formed on 2010. We are a power-trio of heavy-psych music from Alicante, Spain.

- How your first record Domo was composed and recorded? Was there an element of improvisation or jam?

Yes, there was an important element of improvisation and jam. Half
record consists of some jams and improvisations that we played in the
studio. We did some sessions based on different ideas and later we chose
the best parts.

- Will the next one be a bit different musically?

It will probably be a little bit different, some parts might be
going in a different direction than the first album. We want to work a
lot more on the structures of the songs and make it more progressive. It
will be psychedelic and heavy but more sophisticated.

- Are the songs already composed? When will it be released?

We're working on some parts for the new record. It will be more
conceptual so we have to think through how we´re going to structure and
mix the different parts of it. Probably it will be released at the end
of this year.

- Do you play your music live? If so how it is like?

Yeah, of course we do. Our performance is heavier and loud on stage but we still have that psychedelic groove on the gigs.

- On the record the songs are each one quite different, with a wide
diversity of influences and sonorities, it seems to me that a song like
Yamantaka has a kind of flamenco or (like other songs in the record) an
oriental feel. Do you agree?

Yeah, well we try to put together a bunch of influences of many
different music styles when we are composing and recording music. Maybe
that influences comes from something we heard on our childhood or maybe
that just comes out depending on our mood that day. Most of the time,
it's just depends on the moment, sometimes it takes you to a particular
place when you're trying to create something.

- How did you get into this kind of spacey, psychedelic, prog and heavy music? Which band in this styles do you like the most?

Well, there are a lot of good bands on the underground scene right
now, and the classic heavy. spacey and psychedelic bands from the
seventies are a great inspiration for us too… Bands like Hawkwind, Black
Sabbath, Leaf Hound, Blue Cheer, Flower Travellin Band, King Crimson,
Captain Beyond, Blues Creation... It's probably what we like most.

- Is there something special in the water in Alicante that helps bands to play this kind of music this well?

Haha, well we don't think so. Here, the scene it's not so big and
of course it's a very underground scene. You don't have many options
here and the people it's not very interested in this kind of music.
Alicante is a tourist place where people come to party, drink and go to
the beach. And beyond all that is where we are.

- What is planned in 2012 for Domo?

We're now very focused on composing the new album, that we expect
to release at the end of the year, ... Before the world collapses and
ends on the way that we know…We will keep doing heavy and psychedelic
music for apocalyptic times...

- Something to add?

We really appreciate your support and thank you for your interest in our music!

vendredi 25 mai 2012

Male mISANDRIA-E.DIN

Male misandria is an unconventionnal black metal band from Italy. What they play is a a kind of radical and apocalyptic black grind punk filled with full speed blastbeats, harsh vocals scremed fiercely in italian or in english and simple and straight to your ears guitar riffs. Only really short (less than one or two min) and intense songs. It's band that you'll like if you find that traditionnal black metal is not agressive and straight to your face enough. If you want a comparison I'll say that it's in a similar vein to Anaal natrakh but punkier and minus the heavy metal melodies and clean vocals. They released a really good full lenght record in 2011 called E.Din and in 2012 a good split with Maleillance (one man primitive black metal band form Quebec).

Their drummer, Magris, answered to questions I sent them (thanks!). You can read it below :

-can you present Male
misandria, why did you form the band, why did you choose that
name,
how the band evolved until now, etc…

Hi,
Male mISANDRIA were born in 2007 as a one man band by Dario.
After
the release of the first demo “Ubermensch”
at the end of that year I’ve
joined
the band as drummer and soon Puja complete the line up as bass
player. Male mISANDRIA is a name andalifestyle
thatis theway werelateto all thesituationsthat we livedat
that time, and in
adifferent waywe
livetoday.Iftheorigins ofits
meaningwas totakeleavefromeach
labelto show howeach of thesewas
an excuseto hidetheir limitations, the
same nametodaymeans usingthe
contradictionthat
each
ofus livesin every situationto
learn aboutourselves
andbuildan essence that can be true and immortal.

The splitwasour
chanceto make
ourselves knownoverseas
as
well, and so farthe responses werepositive. PersonallyI hope tohave
the samekind ofopportunity witha
full length, where we
would be ableto
showmore broadlyour
proposal. Thesesplitsare
likelyto obscuremanyaspects,
and end uppromotinga messagethat
is likely tobe
understoodone
way.

-I think your music is
quite unconventional, do you consider Male misandria a is black
metal
band? Or just an extreme metal band? How would you describe the
specificities of your music?

-some elements in your
music remind me of Anaal natrakh, is it an influence for you? What
influences your music?

I would notgotoridiculous,but
I swear itbeforea few monthsago,I had neverevenhearda
song byAnaalNathrakh. I'm
sureDario
and Puja havelisten
to them, butI do not thinkarethe maininfluencesfor composingsongs.
Ifyou
askedeach of uswhat is themusical
influencehe used
towriteguitar
riffs, the voiceor the drums ofa
song, we would
giveyouthreedifferentanswersandtotallyembarrassing. Musicallywe are certainlyinfluencedby
all branchesofmoreextrememetal, punk, hardcore
andblack metal,
butit's
justthe musical,
which in our caseis
a means not a purpose.

-with which kind of bands
do you usually play, Black metal bands, grind, punk bands, all
kinds
of band?

Oncewe couldjust
playwith theyoungerbandsof variousgenres,
because the publicand
theband's most"true", whenwe played for them,
cameout
of the place, probably because
at thattime to
seePujashirtlesscouldembarrassthose of its, that at the same age of us
have
the belly of a retiredand
not only the belly. But nowit
seemsthat thingsstart toturnthe right wayand
we have nothadsomething goes wrongwith anyone, in
fact,
ultimatelywe
knowgreat peopleof all ages.

jeudi 24 mai 2012

Arctic flowers-Reveries

Portland's Arctic flowers is a band (featuring an ex-signal lost on guitar and the drummer of Defect defect) renewing in a good way post-punk / new wave punk, and their music can please emo fans and crust fans alike. They merge the punk sound and urgency on one hand and melodies (guitar and the female vocals) and dark melancholic atmospheres on the other. they released their first LP, called Reveries, in 2011, and it is a really cool and catchy record (they also released casettes, an awesome demo and a really good split with Spectres).

lundi 21 mai 2012

Seagulls insane and swans deceased mining out the void (2011)

This untitled album released by the polish duo Seagulls insane and swans deceased mining out the void (ouf!) in november 2011 is a really interesting and promising effort in slow cold darkness, or post black doom industrial metal if you prefer. The songs are based on repetition, noisy textures, vicious melodies, grim vocals and an overall desperate atmosphere. Maybe the first and last songs, and the end of the third as well, would have needed some editing and maybe it would have gained to be an EP, but the rest, songs II, most part of III and IV are really special and good, they really deserves you listen to it.

samedi 19 mai 2012

Laike-Långt från stadslivets dån

This time I present you something really different. Laike is a solo project by a swedish flutist and composer called Christofer Ståhle. Långt från stadslivets dån (which means far away from the noise of the city) was released in february 2012, it is a work inspired, among other things, by british folk rock bands of the 70'. Some parts are improvisations recorded in an oil cisterno in Shangai. The whole record has a somewhat "magic" atmosphere, with really enjoyable melodies, the singing in swedish adding to the eerie feling of the songs. All that makes a really special record. If you like folk, prog', soft psychedelia and 70' rock or just good melodies you should give it a try. You won't regret it.

Christofer Ståhle kindly answered to some questions I sent him so you can read it below :

-tell me about the birth of the Laike project, your first solo album after having played in bands for ten years isn’t it?

I had been playing with a band called Mashbrick and the Horns of Plenty for over 10 years but for different reasons we
got stuck with some recordings. The fact that I wanted to play, record
and finish different recordings of my songs without being able to do so
made me think about controlling the process myself instead. Since I had
no experience in sound engineering it took a lot of effort to
learn all that, but it was fun at the same time. During the period when
I made the album I was very focused on my music and it was quite
intensive. I sat mostly in my studio/bed room and recorded or went to
different friends to fulfill my arrangements. It was great fun.

-how would you describe the music of Långt från stadslivets dån?

I guess I would say it is moody music, sometimes with an energetic groove, but always with focus on the melodies. I'm sure you
can hear that my sources of inspiration mainly come from the 70s and in
particular folk rock bands, but since I like more funky and groovy
songs from that period as well I didn't want to confine myself to the
folk genre.

-what about the musicians playing on the record?

All the muscians on the album are my friends and people that I play with in other constellations. When I made the arrangements I
thought about which musician would fit which song. After that I
travelled to different places to record them. Without all these friends the
record would have become something totally different, probably more
boring. I like to get new inputs to my music from other minds

and I think the music benefits from that.

-Have you played the music of Långt från stadslivets dån live or do you intend to do it?

Yes
I have. Sometimes I have played on my own and that makes the musical
expression of my songs very different. Some songs fit better than other
for this and I think it's more difficult to play on my own, but at the
same time it is a very direct and naked expression to play on your own.
When I play with a band the groove is better and the drums give more
energy. I prefer to play with a band, but sometimes it's easier and more
practical to play on my own. Lately I've been playing with muscians
from the Stockholm-based band Lisa and Piu.

-what about the lyrics? What are the main themes?

The
main theme is a critique of modern society. Perhaps I have studied too
much sociology and human ecology but I think about society and how it
affects our behaviour a lot.

I
guess some songs deal more with existential questions but I often write
about how the individual is connected to social patterns. In a way you
could say that my lyrics are pretty serious
and sometimes a bit dark. It is not a very positive image of modern
soicety that I portray, but I think about this very often so I think the
lyrics say something about me too.

-the album was recorded part in Sweden and part in Shangai, tell us more about that, and especially concerning the Shangai part?

I
studied sociology in Shanghai for one semester after recieving a
scholarship. After meeting a friend (who was very interested in
stocks) in yoga classes at the university, she asked
if I wanted to come to a party in a suburb with "creative people living
very differently". It sounded interesting so I went along and
eventually we ended up in a Chinese hippie
collective. The attributes were the same as elsewhere. Long hair,
bearded men and colorful clothes. They liked the Doors and the
Beatles... One of them was a sound artist

and
he told me that he used to record with different sound artists in an
oil cisterno close to their home. The day after we went with a shabby
rowing boat to the cisterno and improvised with
singing, overtone singing, hand claps and my flute. Fortunately
another Chinese friend came along and filmed everything with her mobile
phone. Back in Sweden I thought the recordings sounded very fascinating so I decided to use parts of them on my album between different songs.

-was the time you spent in China an inspiration for your music, or not really?

I
made some songs in China that later was used on the album, so in some
ways I got inspired in China, but at the same time most of the hard work
was made back in Sweden.

I
had a lot of time for playing in Shanghai, but unfortunately I didn't
find the right people to jam with so I mostly played on my own. I can't
say I was that inspired by Chinese music.

-I read that you took musical inspiration from british folk bands of the 70’, how did you get into this kind of music?

Hmmm,
I'm not really sure. I think I borrowed a CD with Fairport Convention
from the library in my home town and since I liked it a lot I started
exploring different bands from that
period. When I heard Pentangle and Steeleye Span I found an expression
that I had been searching after for a long time without knowing exactely
how it would sound. I think it is the
direct, organic and restrained expression, quite sensitive but without
getting sentimental that I fell for. Somehow it fits very well with my
personality.

-is your next record already written? How will it sound?

I
will record with musicians from the band Lisa and Piu in late June. I
have made a demo for them that they are working with now so it will be
very interesting to see what they come
up with. Some songs will be more folky than last album and pretty
monotonous, while other will be faster and more energetic. None will be
that funky as two of the songs on the
last album. There will be more clean electric guitar and
Wurlitzer piano than last album. In some ways I think the songs are more
complex on the new album.

-what do you plan for 2012?

My
plan is to record another album and to stop playing in most of the 10
musical projects i participate in so that I can get more time to my own
music and to other things I
want to do in life. I will continue to play with the psychedelic forest
reggae band Storskogen (means giant forest) though and we will play
about ten gigs this Summer.

-which bands playing in a “spirit” close to yours would you recommend?

vendredi 18 mai 2012

Ruined families

Punk/hardcore coming form Greece, Ruined families released in february 2012 an untitled 7' (four songs) after an LP called Four walls freedom in 2010. Both records really deserves you listen to it. The songs, chaotic and melodic at the same time, are soaked with a sense of desperate passion and urgency. The quality of the lyrics, with its good mesure of irony and dark poetry is also a good point for the band.

If you like punk/hardcore bands playing with enough personnality and keeping it as intense as it should be I recommend you check Ruined families!

Mathias Huxley for thedowngoing accepted to answer to a few of my questions (thank you Mathias!), so you you can read it below :

-can you tell us the story of the band?

Muzz and I first met while we were both studying music at TAFE back in
2007. Shared musical preferences led to us performing together on class
assignments (Slayer covers), and when the course had finished, we just
continued to jam together and started writing our own material.

-is being a duo a choice or more a result of circumstances?

At first it was a result of circumstance, we’d tried jamming with a
third member a few times but couldn’t find the right person to round out the
band. So in the end, after several months of jamming as a 2-piece, we realised
that we didn’t need a third member, as we had found a sound and direction we
were both happy with.

-how are your live shows?

Noisy, fast and loud.
I replicate the samples from the recordings using a sample pad, which I play
with my feet, while handling guitar and vocal duties while Muzz blasts away
behind the kit. Anyone expecting to mosh along is going to be disappointed.

Two memories stand out in my mind from our shows, this one time when we
made a classically trained violinist cry because we were “ruining music”, and
this one time where a guy shot up heroin at the back of the room.

-is bringing noise and samples into the grind a way to make it sounding
different, or just you like grind AND noise and wanted to do both at the same
time instead of choosing one or doing it in different bands?

The main purpose of the samples is to provide some insight into the
aural carnage, offering reference points amongst the chaos. The noise influence
is due to just wanting to push ourselves and our sound as far as possible, it
wasn’t so much a conscience decision to be “noise-grind” or anything, more just
how our sound has come together through years of playing. We certainly weren’t
as “noisy” when we started out, so maybe it’s a reaction to the market
saturation of triggered, highly produced garbage that gets passed off as
grindcore nowadays.

-your music is really noisy and chaotic, do you think traditional grind
is too straightforward and sometimes a bit boring because of that?

There seems to be a lot of grindcore bands nowadays just playing it
safe, content to continue putting out records that maintain the grind ethos
without expanding on it. It all seems rather redundant to me, since grindcore
is about pushing boundaries.

-on one thing you follow the grind tradition, less than one minute
songs! Do you think it helps keeping it intense? Or is it to have more
possibility of drinking beer between the songs? or was it for being sure to be
featured on one of the coming Monomaniac records?

Grindcore is for the kids with the ADHD, right?
I’ve never given much thought to the length of songs. My song-writing process
just involves refining the songs until they hit with the most impact, and part
of that process is cutting away unnecessary fat and repetition.And funny you mention the Monomaniac Comp Series, because in true tdg fashion,
we decided to cram 3 tracks into the 60 seconds. Never ones to conform

-what about the lyrics of the songs?

The lyrics are usually introspective, and reflect my personal life,
relationships and struggles. They are focused on the negative and dark aspects
of humanity, and act as an extension of the noise.
No gore, no porn, no misogyny, none of that bullshit.
I have to really care about the subject to submerse myself in it, to give my
all to it, to shred my throat for it.

-what about your coming record?

It’s 12 tracks in just over ten minutes and in my opinion is way more
abrasive than the Untitled EP. We have to thank Jono Boulet from Snakeface for
recording, mixing and mastering it for us. He really pushed us and got the most
out of the recording. We’ll be releasing it in Australia to coincide with our
tour in July/August. More details about an international release in the next
few months.

-you’ll be part of a coming US tour with Water torture and Cloud rat,
tell us more about it?

Super stoked about this. Both Water Torture and Cloud Rat and amazing
bands. We’re looking at something like 40 dates in 45 days, touring with Water
Torture for the first couple weeks down the East Coast and through the Midwest,
and then hooking up with Cloud Rat for more Midwest, some Canadian dates and
West Coast shows.
Looks likely the tour will kick off early November, so we’ll have more details
on the tour in the next few months as we get it all together.

There are some great Aussie grind bands kicking round at the moment, the established names are still going strong (The
Kill, Agents, Capt Cleanoff) and newer bands starting what seems like every
other week. It is funny to see how well represented Australia is on the world
stage when it comes to Grind and extreme music, considering our low population.
Every time we get out and play we are seeing more and more people supporting
extreme music, and more bands participating in creating it. It’s exciting times
for sure.

-tell us a joke!

Napalm Death circa 2012.

-something to add?

Swing by Grindcore Karaoke and take a listen to our 2011 Untitled EP, keep
an eye on thedowngoing.blogspot.com for more news on our US tour and
forthcoming release, and live life at 300bpm.

lundi 14 mai 2012

Phobia-remnants of filth

Since their formation in 1990, Phobia from Orange county, California, delivers mercilessly their old school grind crustpunk. Their fifth LP, Remnants of filth (released by willotip) to come in june shows once again that it's not by chance that they are among the most respected grind act. The presence among them of Bryan Fajardo (Noisear, Kill the client, Gridlink) is also a good indication concerning "in which league they play". Don't need to tell you that with Remnants of filth you'll get a good dose of speed, blastbeat and d-beats, your crustmetal riffing and your angry vocals and fuck the system lyrics. Which is a really cool thing isn't it? not the least original, but really crushing and adrenaline fuelled!

samedi 12 mai 2012

Batillus / Whitehorse split

If you like music that is heavy, slow, with a dark, cold and noisy atmosphere chances are you already know Batillus and Whitehorse because both bands recently released excellent records (Furnace for Battilus, progression for Whithehorse, both in 2011). Vendetta records did a good job in releasing this new split featuring these two bands. two songs for Battilus, one for Whitehorse, half an hour of cold and noisy doom with an almost industrial vibe.

mercredi 9 mai 2012

Th'Empires

This is just a cool rockabilly/psychobilly trio from south Indiana. they say on their bandcamp that since 2008 they "have been tearing around the country playing shows in basements, bars, and on top of cars."

they play a modern take on rockabilly (or psychobilly more oriented toward rockabilly than punk ).And they do it right.

so check them out and enjoy your daily amounts of rock'n'roll!

you can listen to their records (last one released in march 2012) on their BC page.

Eddy Price, composer, singer and guitarist of Th'Empires agreed to answer to the questions I sent him about his band (thanks Eddy!). Read it below :

-can you present Th’empires, its birth and its evolution until now ?

th'EMPIRES
began as a personal return to punk rock and a bit of a response to all
the bullshit modern rockabilly. I started the band November of 2008
just a month after my previous band expired. The band started out as a
two piece with a bit of a Flat Duo Jets sound and setup. My friend Mandy
Marie introduced me to Dex Romweber about a year after th'EMPIRES were
started. It made me feel good to know that someone else out there had
done that garage-a-billy sound. My goal from the beginning was to play
every opportunity presented, the drummer that I had at the time wasn't
quite as roadworthy as I had hoped. Spring of 2009 I lost my home along
with most of my personal possessions. This situation pushed me to go
ahead and start booking us on the road as much as possible. We set up
release of our first album and a short two week tour for support. Three
days before this tour kicked off my drummer broke up with me via text at
7am. With three days notice I was not able to find a replacement
drummer. My solution was a bass drum and hi-hat that I found in my Dad's
barn.

I
practiced several times a day for three days and headed out, channeling
Hasil Adkins. The tour was a success and I sold out all copies of
"th'EMPIRES Go Crazy" (our first EP). As soon as I returned from this
tour I hit the studio and recorded "th'EMPIRES Strike Back!" as a one
man band. A few weeks after this album was completed I was back on the
road with my friend (and amazing photographer) Molly Burkett, who joined
me live on keyboard.

At
this point I had realized that life on the road was much easier than
couch surfing around my hometown. So, I headed back out again still
supporting "Strike Back!" Up to this point I had experienced amazing
luck on the road. My "tour bus" at this time was a 1985 Pontiac
Parisienne. The Pontiac had enough room for my equipment, sleeping
space, and room for a couple passengers. On this run however the Pontiac
started to wear out and show it's age. The transmission went out in
Fort Worth TX. I left the car behind and took a bus to Austin to try and
play some shows and raise money to have it fixed. About a month later I
returned to Indiana on a train, drunk, but precisely on time to play
the last show of that tour. After a couple months in Indiana raising
money, my cousin and I set out hitchhiking back to Dallas where the car
was being held and repaired. We made it back to the car (alive) after
about a week and a half on and off the road. The entire trip was filled
with amazing and completely terrifying experiences. The car was returned
safely home and retired. Shortly after this trip my buddy J moved back
from Austin and joined me on Upright Bass, then we added Zachary Jetter
on Drums and headed back into the studio to record "We Are th'EMPIRES".
We toured with the three piece and I toured separately, as a one man
band on the road with Pretty Things Peepshow. In between those tours we
returned to the studio again and re-recorded and compiled our originals
from all the previous EP's and Singles. In addition to those we included
two unique originals. This is the format we plan on using for the life
of this project, mimicking the comic book format I suppose. We will be
releasing singles on 7" Vinyl on a very regular basis then compiling
everything after every few releases for a full length. I don't know
that evolution is the proper term for what this project has gone
through. I believe adaptation would be a more fitting description.

-do you play or have played in other bands?

I have
been playing live since I was 16, mostly in shitty local punk bands
that never made it out of the basement. My most recent before th'EMPIRES
was a more traditional Rockabilly project called the Phantom Cruisers.
In addition to th'EMPIRES, I am working on some solo projects including a
lo-fi gospel project thru my record label Auris Apothecary. Also I am
doing a bit of DJing and working on a project to create a kind of DIY
"American Bandstand".

-to me
your music sounds rooted in rockabilly, but with a fresh, modern and
more aggressive twist, a bit like psychobilly but without sounding as
punk. Do you agree?

My
favorites were always the artists who were pushing the limits and
getting really wild. I love Gene Vincent, Little Richard, Benny Joy,
Hasil Adkins, a lot of the classic jump blues artists like Wynonie
Harris and Piano Red. Rockabilly, in my opinion was the first wave of
punk rock. True punk rock always pushed the limits. I am an aggressive
performer, I like my music in your face, sweaty and dangerous.

-what
is the kind of gig which you prefer playing? Do you play sometimes in
Kustom cars shows, tattoo conventions or things like that?

I like
playing in basements, dive bars, garages, outdoors in unconventional
spaces, anyplace dirty that has soul and a personality of its own.
Those are my preferences.

-how did you get into rock’n’roll? What does rock’n’roll means to you?

While
growing up living in Israel we only received two radio stations. They
played a lot of Elvis Presley, Little Richard and Iron Maiden. I dug
it.

-I’m not completely convinced by the remixed version of th’march, but at least that’s a try. what is the story of this remix?

My buddy Wally Wonder (a local hip-hop DJ) did this dub of th'March. It came out exactly the way I wanted it.

-Are
there a lot of people into the rockabilly/psychobilly scene in your
area? Which band (in any kind of music) would your recommend from your
area?

We
don't have much of a rockabilly/psychobilly scene around here. The town I
am currently living in has a decent garage scene which works well with
the style of rockabilly that i play. There is a fella by the name of
Nate Gibson who is currently playing in the area, he is top notch. Also I
can highly recommend Indianapolis native (and Rockabilly Hall Of Fame)
Art Adams. He is the real deal, not into the politics, has always
delivered real raw rock'n roll. Chicago seems to have a lot of good
stuff going on.

-I read that you played as a one man band, do you still do that? How was it?

Read about it in the answer to the first question. It was really fun, very tiring but very fun.

-have you started writing new songs, how will be the next record?

I have
a few new songs ready for the next album. I can't say anything about it
except that it will be recorded at the legendary Sun Studios and will
be available on 7" Vinyl this fall

-When will you tour Europe?

I'd do it tomorrow if someone were willing to set it up! Hopefully really soon.

-what is planned for Th’empires in 2012? What can we expect?

We're gonna crash the party and get really wild!

-tell us a joke.

Nashville TN

-want to add something?

folks should head over to our website and check out our music. The website address is www.thempires.com

while
they are there, they should pick up a copy of our newest album "Volume
1" on limited edition cassette tape. They come with all kinds of bonus
materials and are only $10.